Baby Proofing

We were really lucky that we moved when the girls were about 7 months old (yes, it has been a year since we moved into our gorgeous home!) and took the opportunity to baby proof as we moved in. Ok, that may have been the ONLY lucky thing about moving with two infants!

When we moved in, we designated rooms that would be NOT baby proofed, and outfitted them with door knob covers so that toddlers could not easily open those rooms. We also got some knob ties for the kitchen, so the girls can't get into the cabinets. At the time, I had searched for something for the sliding closet doors and didn't find anything, so we had  been using some weights and pieces of the foam matts to keep the girls out of them (not perfect but it worked). 

The one room that I have been putting off baby proofing, oddly, is the nursery. The sliding door was left untouched and the girls' dresser not baby proofed. We usually just bring them in there to change them and put them down for naps or bed time, so it was just our policy to keep the door closed when the room was not in use. 

Finally, a few things have come up as things that needed some care. Like the faucet in the tub that the girls are now fascinated with, and seem to always want to play around - I was worried the girls would wack their little heads on its sharp edges.  Josie also has an obsession with closing doors, so we had to find something to stick on the doors so she can't close any fingers in there, her own or Alex's.  

I still have a few things I want to take care of in their room, for example leaving the monitor chord hanging within reach isn't great, especially with Alex wrapping things around her neck (she is mimicking purses and necklaces). I'd also like to secure the furniture to the walls, so any future unsupervised climbing, especially when they move to real beds, doesn't result in any injuries.

Our number one goal with products is to find things that are not permanent, don't require drilling into walls or furniture, are applied easily, and wont damage surfaces. Its a tall order, but can be done! Although I suspect we will have to drill the girls' dresser to the wall. 

In the meantime, here is some of the stuff we got, that is working wonders. 

Munchkin brand Drawer clips - they stick on with some 3M adhesive, so you can remove it later. The lock
releases when you push down on the top and bottom buttons. Click here to buy them. 

This is as open as the drawer can get - while they can still pinch fingers in there, so its not perfect,
this is better than finding all of their clothes on the floor. The design of the drawer made it hard to
attach these to allow NO opening at all.

Not sure where these were last year when I was searching for a product to keep our sliding closet doors closed,
but these are perfect. They lock open, keeping both sides from being able to move, then you can unlock them and use the
closet as needed. Just lock them back up when done. Super easy to use! Click here to buy them.

Josie was really annoyed by these locks at first! (Note the package says you can get away with just one per door, but I thought I would just use two per door as they weren't expensive and I want the additional protection from strong babies!) These are also applied with 3M tape, so easy to remove later. By the way, for removal of 3M tape, I recommend using a hair dryer to soften the adhesive, then removing. Then use a product like GooGone to remove any residue.

Alex (unhappily) posing with our cabinet door locks. These are great and I was so happy my mother in law approved of their looks! Click here to buy them. They are really sweet looking, easy to use,
and are made in the USA by the physically and mentally disabled ! 

A really soft, understated faucet cover for the bathtub. Let me tell you how hard it is to find something NICE for the bathtub faucet. Why does baby proof need to be synonymous with hideous cartoony designs? Its not like we want to attract the babies to the unsafe item, right? Finally came across this one and was sold. Click here to buy. 

                              

Here are the little door safety guys I found. They were super cheap on Amazon (click here to buy) a pack of 7 was $5. When not needed on the lip of the door, you can stick them on the door knob. We have also outfitted some doors with door stops, to keep them open.

The doorknob covers are these guys - you can see one in action on the laundry room/bar room in the next picture (purchase here):

And we set up our baby play yard as a gate around our TV Stand, and little foam corners for the coffee table.